The following correction was printed in the Guardian's Corrections and clarifications column, Monday January 22 2007

It was only in our early edition that Suzanne Adams could not bare to watch her husband play in the world professional darts championship. In later editions she couldn't bear it.

With his wife hiding in a cubicle in the toilets because she could no longer bear to watch, Martin "Wolfie" Adams held his nerve to win the British Darts Organisation's world professional title in an astonishing final at the Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green, Surrey, last night.

The England captain beat Phill Nixon, a house-husband from Durham, 7-6 in a match that equalled the extraordinary drama of Raymond van Barneveld's defeat by the same scoreline of Phil Taylor in the rival corporation's final a fortnight ago.

Adams, 50, becomes the oldest winner of a title previously held by Eric Bristow, Jocky Wilson and John Lowe, who previously held that distinction when he won in 1993 at 48. But no matter how great a legend any of those are in this sport, none of them were part of a final which matched this confrontation for excruciating tension.

Adams, from Market Deeping in Lincolnshire, the beaten finallist in 2005, led 6-0 when the players took a break. It had been so one-sided it was embarrassing at times, such was Adams' ability to hit the doubles. He had won 10 legs in a row. But in a thrilling fight-back Nixon, who carries out all housework except the ironing and was a 500-1 shot to win the crown, took the next six sets.

Both men were shaking their head in disbelief: Adams at the way his magnificent game had disappeared, Nixon because he could not comprehend how he was now playing. Nixon was hitting 180s more frequently, ending the match with 10 compared with Adams' six.

Adams' wife Sharon, who runs a swimming school, had to leave the arena. "Why does he always do it to me?" she said after being fed the last few leg-by-leg results by the wife of a BDO official before being lured out to watch the finale.

Adams had almost thrown away victory in the semi-finals despite being way ahead. "I was sobbing. I was in such a state," added Sharon. Adams, who has been playing at Lakeside for 14 years, said: "Before Sharon left I looked across to her and told her to calm down. I shouted out to her that the world would not stop if I lost. I said: 'It is only a game of darts; if I do not win, I do not win.'

"But I did. I have been chasing this title all my life and to achieve this success, at last, is fantastic. It is lovely to be the oldest champion."

Adams took control again to win the final set 3-0, taking the crown with a double-top finish to land the £70,000 first prize. Nixon, who is three months older than Adams, has been playing darts for 33 years and has been trying to qualify for Lakeside for two decades.

In the past he would pretend he was at the world championship by playing the opponent who was on the television at the time, throwing his three darts at the board in his house. He has been unemployed for two years, using the free time to practise his darts "between doing the hoovering".

Nixon's wife Suzanne, 37, who works for the government agency Connections, managed to stay in the room. "It was torture out there," she said. "I was proud of him before he came here. But don't think he wears a pinny at home, he does not."

But Nixon, who won £30,000 as runner-up, does not expect his life to change, even though he has guaranteed himself a place back here by reaching the final. "I will be home tomorrow and it will be a busy day," said Nixon.

"There were 30 people around at my house and I am going to have a real mess to clear up. At the interval I was annoyed with myself and I gave myself a little dig in the legs with my dart and said to myself 'Do not disgrace yourself.'

"I have been living the dream being here and, when I went back out there, I was so determined. I am a fighter and it proved to be such a great match."